Bricks constructed of a kiln baked clay or the like have been used for centuries as a building material. It is well known that bricks are typically used by placing mortar, such as a concrete mixture, between bricks and then simply laying one layer of bricks on top of another with this mortar disposed therebetween. Buildings constructed using this method have long been admired for their beauty, durability, and maintenance free attributes.
A major disadvantage of conventional brick construction is that it is expensive, labor intensive, and normally should must be done by people skilled in the brick laying art.
Because it is desirable to achieve the "look" of brick while at the same time trying to decrease the costs of construction, a thin brick has been utilized to form brick panels for the purpose of reducing the costs, reducing the time involved and reducing the amount of skill required to produce a brick construction.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,470 to Bauer et al discloses the use of a thin plastic sheet bonded to an insulating panel and having continuous brick engaging ribs disposed horizontally thereon so that thin bricks can be adhesively affixed to the thin plastic sheet and held in place until mortar is applied between adjacent bricks and over the plastic ribs and plastic sheet to present a surface which looks from the outside to be just like a brick wall constructed by a skilled brick layer.
One of the problems associated with the thin brick system of the aforementioned prior art is that these continuous horizontal ribs do not permit water to drain therefrom as readily as is desirable. Once the foam backing and thin plastic sheet with the ribs thereon are attached to a substrate or vertical structural member, the exterior surface must be completely dry before the thin bricks are adhesively bonded thereto. If it rains before the bricks are attached, the water cannot readily drain off of these horizontal members and any water left on the ribs or thin plastic surface will diminish the structural integrity of the panel when the bricks are adhesively bonded thereto.
Furthermore, if the panel ever develops cracks in the brick or mortar or a combination thereof during its life while attached to the exterior of a building, moisture can obviously enter these cracks. Since cracks are always a possibility, especially since most construction is designed to last for decades, freezing and thawing of moisture in such cracks can cause the panel to deteriorate. Accordingly, it is important that if cracks develop, that the moisture which will inevitably enter these cracks will have a place to easily drain away so that freezing and thawing will be minimized. When continuous horizontal ribs are used to form such a thin brick panel as in the aforementioned prior art, these horizontal continuous ribs will prevent or seriously detract from the moisture draining process in a panel.
Consequently, there is a need for an improved thin brick panel structure and a method of forming such a structure that will maximize the drainage of water prior to adhesively attaching the bricks thereto and throughout the life of the brick panel if cracks should ever form or moisture should ever find its way through the bricks or mortar.
Another problem associated with the thin brick panels of the prior art is the problem of making sure that the mortar is properly locked to the thin plastic panel so that it will not, at some time in the future, simply separate and fall out, thereby presenting an unsightly appearance and destroying the moisture barrier that the mortar achieves.
Accordingly, there is a need for a better way to lock the mortar to the thin plastic sheet of a thin brick panel.